Disclaimer: Theses characters and this universe are not my invention. All hail the Queen!


Everything Falls Apart

Evening sun cast odd shadows along the alley. Angelina hurried past many newly renovated store fronts carrying a bag of takeout. She came to a stop in front of the most brightly colored one. The windows were dark and the door was locked. Dust was accumulating on the objects in the window display and smudges covered the glass in the door. Angelina tapped the handle with her wand and the door swung open for her. She bent down and picked up the stack of envelopes on the floor in front of the door. She followed her old tracks in the dust to the back room. She wound her way through the stacks of boxes holding forgotten merchandise to the stairs at the back. As she climbed, she did her usual mental preparations, what she would see, what she would say, how he would react. She lingered for a moment with her hand on the knob. She took a deep breath as she opened the door.

The flat was much as it was when she dropped by last week. Of course she had done a thorough cleaning before she left, but looking now she couldn't tell that she had. Bottles littered the every surface. Sweets wrappers were strewn across the floor. Dust and dirt had built up in the corners. Angelina laid the envelopes on top of the others on the table. She opened the refrigerator and took out the old still full boxes of takeout and replaced it with the new. The only other items in the fridge were a case of Butterbeer and an old bottle of pumpkin juice.

The bedroom door opened and Angelina turned to see George standing at the threshold in only boxer shorts. She wondered how much weight he had lost since last week. He had to be down by fourty pounds in all. His once brawny fame was now hollow and drawn. His hair disheveled and a shadow of red whiskers covered his chin and jaw.

"Ange, back for our weekly meeting?" he slurred.

Angelina sighed. "No. Not this time, George. I can't do this anymore."

"Then what are you doing here?" he spat.

"I'm worried about you, George. We all are."

"Why? I'm fine."

"You're not! And if you keep going this way you're going to end up dead!"

He stomped up to her so they were standing toe to toe. "What do you know of it? Maybe it would be better that way!" His breath was heavy with firewhiskey.

She swallowed hard trying to quell the hot tears forming in her eyes. "Don't say that," she whispered.

He threw his hands up and she flinched back slightly. "Why do you even care? Why do you keep coming by if you are so repulsed by me?"

"Because I love you, you bloody great prat! I love you but I can't sit here and watch you drink yourself into oblivion anymore. Is this what Fred would have wanted for you?"

He put his finger in her face. "Don't you dare bring him into this!"

"Do you think he would act like this if it was you instead?"

"I said leave him out!"

"Because you know I'm right! Fred would be ashamed to see his brother like this! You disgrace his memory, George!"

He opened his mouth to shout a retort but all that escaped was a croak from deep down in his chest. A sob slipped through his lips as he fell into Angelina's arms. She wrapped him up tightly as he shook, his grief too strong to make a sound as the sobs wracked through him. Eventually it subsided and she led him over to the torn up sofa. She sat down at the end and George laid down and put his head in her lap. They sat in silence for a while, Angelina gently running her fingers through his hair. She could feel wet patches forming on the knees of her jeans.

"I don't know how to live without him," he whispered.

"We're all trying to figure it out, Georgie. Your mum, your dad, your brothers and Ginny, me and Lee, even Harry."

"But-

"I know it's not the same for some us; he wasn't our twin brother. But your mum lost a son, her baby that she carried for nine months, that she cared for and fussed over for twenty years. She's having just as hard a time."

He was silent for some time. Angelina continued to stroke his hair, listening to his unsteady breathing marked here and there by hiccups and shudders.

"I've been a complete ass, haven't I?" he said finally.

"Not a complete one. Nobody expected you to be okay after what happened."

"I'm sorry for the grief I've caused you and everyone else."

"It's already forgiven, love."

He sighed. "What do I do now?"

"What do you me?"

"How do I pick my life back up and move on?"

Angelina was taken back by how much he sounded like a lost child. She pushed back the tears threatening to emerge again. "Well, I think the first step is to put down the drink. St. Mungo's has a good recovery program. It's only a week in the hospital and then the rest is done as an outpatient."

"And what about after that?"

"Let's just take it one step at a time, yeah?"

"Yeah."


9.2- 'Cause I'm so done playing these games with my heart I've been around the world and back for you, and now its time to choose.- Heartless - A Day to Remember

WC: 895

Also written for the Chapter Title Acrostic challenge: envelope